ČEZ ESCO to modernise CTU dormitories this year in Czechia

The dormitory campuses of the Czech Technical University in Prague (CTU) will undergo insulation upgrades, heating, ventilation and lighting renovations, and window and door replacements this year. The dormitory modernisation is expected to cost CZK 220 million excluding VAT and reduce the university’s energy spending by CZK 20 million a year. The contractor is ENESA, part of the ČEZ ESCO group. Representatives of the university and the company announced this at a press conference today.

The university will use CZK 67 million from the Operational Programme Environment (OPE) for the project. According to CTU, the subsidy will fund construction works with long payback periods, but without which the benefits of the energy modernisation would be lower.

According to director Kamil Čermák, installation work is due to take place during this year.

“In terms of its scale, the CTU project is a groundbreaking energy-saving project, in which we will use improved technical solutions from similar projects at the National Theatre, the Prague Congress Centre and the Academy of Fine Arts,” adds Václav Taubr, CEO of ENESA.

The contract will be carried out through so-called energy performance contracting (EPC), through which the university should save 26 percent of its current energy and water costs.

EPC projects guarantee the customer contractually that the supplier will achieve the savings; otherwise, it must pay the difference itself.

“Energy-saving projects delivered through EPC place great emphasis not only on energy savings, but also on the environment and reducing the climate footprint. Thanks to the project, we will save more than 4,000 tonnes of carbon dioxide annually and significantly increase the operational efficiency of our buildings and, through the related modernisation measures, their value as well,” CTU Rector Vojtěch Petráček said today.

CTU has some of the largest dormitories in Czechia, and the university’s management decided some time ago to renovate them in order to reduce heat, gas, electricity and water consumption.

The modernisation will cover the Novoměstský Hotel, the Students’ House and seven dormitory campuses, often historic buildings with high energy consumption requirements.

As part of the modernisation, more than 16,800 light fittings will be replaced, 23 heat sources with a combined capacity of 8,850 kilowatts will be upgraded, and almost 6,000 water-saving devices will be installed.

CTU operates the Strahov, Orlík, Bubeneč and Podolí dormitories, as well as the Hlávka, Masaryk, Sinkule and Dejvice dormitories. However, according to university bursar Jiří Boháček, the Bubeneč dormitory is not included in the modernisation project.

“In parallel with the EPC project, it will undergo a complete reconstruction, which will cost around CZK 200 million. The building could no longer be included in an EPC project because it is in poor technical condition,” the bursar said today.

Occupancy at CTU dormitories exceeds 7,500 resident students. With capacity for more than 4,600 beds, the Strahov dormitories are Europe’s largest student accommodation campus.

According to ČEZ, the dormitory modernisation is the first in a series of major projects being developed thanks to a new structure for OPE subsidies. Applicants committing to modernisation delivering at least a 10 percent demonstrable energy saving are awarded an additional five percent subsidy.

Technical parameters of the project:

• Investment excluding VAT: CZK 219.5 million
• Project duration: 11 years
• Number of campuses: 9
• Number of buildings: 30
• Number of replaced light fittings: 16,838
• Number of upgraded heat sources: 23 (8,850 kW)
• Number of installed water-saving devices: 5,766
• Air volume of reconstructed ventilation systems: 116,000 m3/hour

Guaranteed annual savings:

• Energy cost savings: CZK 20.5 million excluding VAT
• Heat savings: 23.5 TJ
• Electricity savings: 2.3 GWh
• Water savings: 71,500 m³